Dipo Olowookere
By Dipo Olowookere
The board of directors of UAC of Nigeria Plc has promised to look into the company’s historical declining performance this year.
Chairman of UAC of Nigeria, Mr Dan Agbor, at the firm’s yearly general meeting in Lagos, explained that this move was to ensure shareholders continue to enjoy value for their investment and faith in the company.
He said when the board unravels the root causes of the company’s historical declining performance, the next step would be to implement initiatives to drive future profitable growth.
In the 2017 financial year, UAC of Nigeria increased its revenue by 7.9 percent to N89.1 billion from N82.6 billion in 2016.
However, its profit after tax declined sharply from N5.6 billion in 2016 to N963 million in 2017, reflecting the compression in the margins of operating subsidiaries.
But Mr Agbor assured shareholders of the firm that the board would make efforts to drive profitability.
According to him, “Specific area of focus will be on capital allocation and portfolio composition, human capital, operating company strategy and most importantly, reinforcing a group-wide culture of accountability and responsibility.
“We will also seek to better link employee compensation to the creation of long term shareholder value.
“I am excited by the challenges as well as by the opportunities that lie ahead, and I assure you that your board and the management of your company are well equipped to meet these challenges and take advantage of the opportunities in the Nigerian economy generally and in our existing businesses more specifically.”
Speaking further, the Chairman said, “You will recall that a total of 960,432,193 ordinary shares of 50 kobo each were issued in this process, at a price of N16.00 per share, and I am pleased to report that as at a result of your strong support, the rights issue was 104.5 per cent subscribed.
“This reflects the confidence that you still have in your company. You have my assurance that the proceeds of the rights issue are already being applied for the intended purposes and will ultimately improve shareholders value.
“I am also pleased to mention that some of our subsidiary companies undertook successful rights issues during the financial year.”
At the meeting yesterday, shareholders of UAC of Nigeria Plc approved the N1.86 billion dividend recommended for the year ended December 31, 2017, representing 65 kobo per share.
The shareholders, who hailed the dividend payout, said they were appreciative of the efforts being made to ensure delivery of increased returns on investments going forward.
